Woodpecker square to guide rail attachment

[Stacker-Steve]

Has anyone attached one of the large Woodpeckers square to their guide rail?

I have the Festool version of the TSO square attachment and I find it’s not as accurate as I’d like. Idk why, just seems every time I use it, it’s off by as much as a 1/16 depending on the length of the cut.

 

[onocoffee]

Some of the other guys have more experience with this and will have more pointed observations to share, but in my experience, the square may be perfectly square but you may still have to set the rail. I've found that on my own (new) MFT setup, I have to check square at the hinge and then make sure that the rail support on the other side is also set correctly. Even just a smidge off will make the cut wonky. I'm suspecting this is what's happening in your case - the rail is set square but the other end isn't laid down as precisely.

How to do that better and rectify the situation? I don't make cuts like this much, and when I do, I mark and set both ends of the rail. But I'm sure others have dealt with just this issue.

 

[Crazyraceguy]

There are 2 TSO squares (triangles) that actually attach to the guide rail. They also have dog holes, to maintain squareness to your part. I have had the smaller one, which fits in a Systainer, for several years. Fantastic tool, highly recommend.
Beyond that, if you regularly make crosscuts that are too wide for a miter saw, a dedicated table can be very beneficial.
All it takes is some perfectly placed dog holes. MFT was never intended for this, thus the fence/hinge apparatus.
The MFT grid of holes is meant to be multi-use, as the name implies. The top is supposed to be considered sacrificial, which makes it somewhat of a commodity product. They are not "guaranteed" to be 100% accurate, not that they are ridiculous, but maybe not good enough for cutting strictly from the dogs.
The Parf-guide drilling system is perfect for this. I used a table like this for the last 10+ years, in a commercial cabinet shop.
The same setup can also be used with a router, or Domino, to make perfectly placed dados, mortices, or slots.

 

[mino]

Has anyone attached one of the large Woodpeckers square to their guide rail?

I have the Festool version of the TSO square attachment and I find it’s not as accurate as I’d like. Idk why, just seems every time I use it, it’s off by as much as a 1/16 depending on the length of the cut.

Keep in mind the FS-WA/90 can be as accurate as it gets but if your rail is not - in the short section that interfaces with the square - then the whole assembly will not be accurate.

Did you test/check the accuracy of the rail square against the WP triangle?
Did you do a 5-cut test. It may be your WP square is the one not actually being square. Then there is the technique. Etc.

If not, do both.
---
All of this is why IMO people should start with the adjustable FS-WA /+ a precise square for calibration/ instead of the GRS 16 (FS-WA/90) fixed-angle square as the only one they have.
That way any imperfections in the rail used can be compensated for and one has a fallback option. Similar like with the Makita rail connectors.

 

[Ebuwan]

I don't have that one, but i have the Woodpecker Adjustable Track Square:

Woodpeckers Adjustable Track Square

Woodpeckers Adjustable Track Square locks onto your Festool, Makita, or Triton guide rail and allows you to square the guide rail to your material instantly. But it goes further…with an adjustable, indexable protractor giving you any angle from square to 60° with positive stops every 5° and...

www.woodpeck.com

(Holy crap it got expensive since I got it!)

But I wonder if this is possible for you to try? I had to follow this page for how to lay it down (I didn't at first as I skipped the instructions). Once I did this, my problems went away; it's essentially having it against the workpiece at an angle in the air and laying it down:

 

[Crazyraceguy]

I don't have that one, but i have the Woodpecker Adjustable Track Square:

Woodpeckers Adjustable Track Square

Woodpeckers Adjustable Track Square locks onto your Festool, Makita, or Triton guide rail and allows you to square the guide rail to your material instantly. But it goes further…with an adjustable, indexable protractor giving you any angle from square to 60° with positive stops every 5° and...

www.woodpeck.com

(Holy crap it got expensive since I got it!)

But I wonder if this is possible for you to try? I had to follow this page for how to lay it down (I didn't at first as I skipped the instructions). Once I did this, my problems went away; it's essentially having it against the workpiece at an angle in the air and laying it down:

I also have a Woodpeckers track square. It was the first one I owned, specifically for the adjustment factor, since I already had a good way to cut square. The limiting factor there is that it can only move in one direction, which is why I got the TSO triangle. It can go either side of square.

 

[Packard]

There are 2 TSO squares (triangles) that actually attach to the guide rail. They also have dog holes, to maintain squareness to your part. I have had the smaller one, which fits in a Systainer, for several years. Fantastic tool, highly recommend.
Beyond that, if you regularly make crosscuts that are too wide for a miter saw, a dedicated table can be very beneficial.
All it takes is some perfectly placed dog holes. MFT was never intended for this, thus the fence/hinge apparatus.
The MFT grid of holes is meant to be multi-use, as the name implies. The top is supposed to be considered sacrificial, which makes it somewhat of a commodity product. They are not "guaranteed" to be 100% accurate, not that they are ridiculous, but maybe not good enough for cutting strictly from the dogs.
The Parf-guide drilling system is perfect for this. I used a table like this for the last 10+ years, in a commercial cabinet shop.
The same setup can also be used with a router, or Domino, to make perfectly placed dados, mortices, or slots.

The TSO units were so well designed that Festool licensed the design. I have not checked their website lately to see if that is still the case. In any case, the TSO squaring arm is very, very nice.

 

[Leadfoot]

The lifting of the track, while the square has the track on your mark, seems to be the key to square cuts when using a track square.
My guess is this works best with 4’ cuts or shorter.

 

[Crazyraceguy]

The TSO units were so well designed that Festool licensed the design. I have not checked their website lately to see if that is still the case. In any case, the TSO squaring arm is very, very nice.

That's the actual Guide rail square. The ones I was referring to are triangle shaped "squares" that function independently of a rail too.

The lifting of the track, while the square has the track on your mark, seems to be the key to square cuts when using a track square.
My guess is this works best with 4’ cuts or shorter.

That is pretty much the case with all rail squares. The reference face to cut length ratio gets too far out to be effective.

 

[mino]

...
That is pretty much the case with all rail squares. The reference face to cut length ratio gets too far out to be effective.

Festool FA-WA with an FS-WA-VL enters the chat.

/yes, it is the exception, yes, it demands calibration and skill/

 

[Crazyraceguy]

Festool FA-WA with an FS-WA-VL enters the chat.

/yes, it is the exception, yes, it demands calibration and skill/

It definitely has and that is a very good option.